My Protector
by Machiavella of Kingsport
Summary: Set in the modern real world, the POTS characters are back...and in high school. Teenage dramas, mishaps, and problems...plus romance later on. (between whom? secret) warning: serious topics!


My Protector

A Protector of the Small Fanfic

By Machiavella of Kingsport

Summary: Set in the modern-day real world, all the POTS characters are back…and in high school. Everyday mishaps turn into full-fledged adventures, conflicts are triple-sized…then again, what else would you expect from these guys? Set mostly from Kel's point of view, but other chapters sometimes focus on different characters. Drama/Some Humor/Malyenkaya Lyubov (a little bit of love).

Rating: PG-13 (language, maybe a little bit bloody, sexual innuendos, serious topics (i.e. drug use and date rape), and the like)

Disclaimers: All characters belong to Tamora Pierce, all countries and locations to their respective republics/municipalities, the school to me, music lyrics either to me or someone else, just in case I use any…artists will be credited. Enjoy, and even if you DO find something to sue me for, please don't do it, because I'm poor enough as it is.

~

CHAPTER 1: Dante's Inferno 

            In a way, Keladry Mindelan was glad to be rid of the Kyoto public school system. She was not much of a deep intellectual, and education was not exactly one of her top priorities…not the way _they_ force-fed it, anyway. Japan's school systems, she had found, had been too rigorous for her standards, with too much stress on being the best, too much competition for awards and school slots. In Kel's mind, competition belonged with sports—her forte. Not in books and sloppily written class notes barely legible enough to do homework with.

            But she looked at the brochure she held in her hand. The International College Preparation Academy. Weren't her parents being a little bit extreme? _No high school's name should even _involve_ anything remotely related to preparation or college, she thought to herself. And her parents knew how much she disliked the pressure of academic competition. She could tell that going to high school would, while getting away from Japan, also mean that she would have the same stress loaded on her every day to succeed, and to be better than all of her peers. She flipped the cover open to the first page:_

            "Our school, a predominantly American education, offers an enriching program designed to cover all high school course requirements, advanced placement test requirements, and even some first-year college courses. We promote international diversity, with youth from every quarter, and encourage our students to challenge language or racial barriers everyday with basic interaction…" Kel stewed inwardly as she read. _If they want social integration, they shouldn't be so anal about it, she thought. __They seem like they want everyone to be a big happy family, but if they really wanted that, they would have to notice that acknowledging everyone's differences just makes them segregated. Shouldn't they realize it defeats the whole purpose, for them to be force-feeding diversity to teens? Kel could tell now that school at the International College Preparation Academy was going to be even worse than middle school in Kyoto. What had her parents been thinking?_

            "Keladry?" It was her mother, calling from the kitchen downstairs.

            "What?" she muttered, nearly under her breath.

            "Kel?"

            "What?" she replied, nearly shouting this time.

            "Come down and talk to me. I want to know what you think of your new school."

            Kel sighed and stood up from her bed, running a hand through her short, coarse hair. _Great. Time to go and lie to my mom. _

            Ilane was leaning on the stove countertop, squinting at an envelope. Short and curvy, her head was barely a foot over the top of the surface when she stood up straight. Kel, almost a foot and a half taller, felt like she ought to be the mother sometimes, and Ilane the daughter. When she slouched through the door, her mother looked up and smiled. "So."

            "Yeah." Kel exhaled frustratedly, blowing strands of her hair up and away from her long face.

            "Why so glum? You know what your father and I always tell you. Keep a smile on your face so people won't know what you think of them. Right now your face tells me you don't want to be talking to me."

            "Sorry." Kel did her best to try and smile. To her it felt more like a grimace. _Here we go, Kel, just say it… "Yes, mother, I absolutely adore the school, and I can't wait for orientation tomorrow."_

            "What do you think?"

            "Well, frankly, mom, I'd rather go out with that homophobic pig from Kyoto Regional than set one foot inside the ICPA campus." Kel fumed, and her attempts to cheer up were blown to the wind.

            Ilane's smile dropped too. "How did I know." She straightened up and put down the envelope. "Well, there's one thing I can say right now—your Japanese friends would not be too impressed with your feeble attempts at hiding your emotion. If Hitaka saw you right now, I bet he'd be ashamed."

            "Oh, mother!" Kel said, rolling her eyes. "We're talking about school, not my boyfriend! And besides, right now, I don't care! We're in our own home, and we're _not Japanese, so can't I just drop the mask? The whole thing's silly anyway. It's nice in public, but it's not as if we're strangers, anyhow."_

            "Fine. So back to school."

            "Right," Kel said, continuing. "First of all—it's as if they're trying to force feed diversity and social and racial integration. That's just not right. Acknowledging peoples' differences only forces them apart, rather than bringing them together. They're working backwards, and they have no clue."

            Ilane nodded, blank-faced. "I agree wholeheartedly."

            "Second of all, you _know I don't appreciate academics. I wasn't made for them…I was made for sports. That's why I go to a martial arts school every night, and why I try so hard in interscholastic sports. You've seen me play hockey. And you know I've always wanted to play American football or rugby, either one. With the guys. I'm sick of being shoved into this tight, oppressive, educational skin when it's clear I just don't fit. You want me to go to school? Send me to a naval academy. I could handle it. Send me to America, I'll do junior ROTC. Anything but this stupid excuse for a high school that, name as evidence, would rather be a college!" Kel ran a hand through her hair and then slouched, folding her arms stubbornly._

            Ilane sighed. "Keladry, you know I would side with you, but for your father."

            "Yes, my father, the ambassador…that's what he wants me to be? The international school, the focus on education, on integration and diplomacy…I know. Because Conal and Inness both went off in the army and are now both majors. Certainly not diplomatic, that. And my sisters all just walk around school flaunting their beauty and makeup, breaking dress codes just to catch the attention of all the guys. They're constantly getting into trouble. So dad sees me as his last chance, right?"

            "Yes. And I'm sorry."

            "Then why don't you _do something about it, mom?" Kel unwrapped her arms and clenched fists. "Or maybe I should talk to dad."     _

"I wouldn't do that if I were you, honey. You know he's always tired from work." Ilane dropped her eyes. Kel could tell that Ilane had probably already talked to him, without success…more than once. "And plus, we know how much you hate Japan. Going to ICPA will be good for you. I hear Sicily is very nice throughout the portion of the year you'll be there. It's inexpensive, and during vacations, we'll come and visit, and we can tour around the Mediterranean. And when you graduate? Just think. It's your decision where to go, college or naval academy, Spain or Canada, or anywhere. You'll be eighteen, and nearly an adult. But for now, I think you had just better sit it out and bear with it."

Much as Kel hated it, she knew her mother was right. Four more years until she had the option of controlling her life, but until then? She was as much alive as she was a child of her father. And she might as well humor him while she had to. But like Ilane had said, once ICPA was over? She couldn't care less what her father would say. "I give in…for now." She looked at her feet and shuffled a little, trying not to shout or kick or scream. "I'll try orientation. I'll try school. I'll go and pack now." Heaving a huge, weary exhalation of defeat, her deflated independence carried her weightlessly up to her room.

A day later, Kel and her parents were sleeping exhaustedly in a hotel room in Sicily. And the morning after that, Kel found herself perspiring in the sweltering heat, in a long line outside on a dreadfully beautiful campus, waiting to be registered for school. She still couldn't believe she had given in. She fumed and fiddled, whistled and shifted, until her name was called. She felt lucky her last name wasn't any closer to the end of the alphabet than it already was. The registrar looked up at her with shy brown eyes, and clucked sympathetically, for all her seemingly tiny amount of courage could muster: "You poor girl," said the registrar. "You can go inside soon, don't worry."

The registrar was a girl who looked to be about sixteen, with mousy brown hair pulled back in a bun. She was very thin and looked as if one large breath could break her delicate bones. She seemed very timid, and her voice trembled and warbled every time she spoke. "So, you're Keladry Mindelan. What a nice name. I'm going to ask you a few quick questions, and then you can go get your picture taken for your ID card."

"Okay," Kel wheezed, wiping a small drop of sweat off her brow.

"Your age and date of birth?"

"Fourteen, and tenth of July, born 1988."

"Year entering?"

"Freshman."

"City and country?"

"Kyoto, Japan."

"Citizenship?"

"England." Kel thought the questions picky, but she kept answering.

"And you're obviously female…tetanus vaccine?"

"Yes—June of 1999."

"Polio, measles?"

"Yes."

"Have you had chicken pox?"

"Yes."

The registrar signed the bottom of the card she was using to checklist the information. "Sign here." 

Keladry obeyed, and made her signature neatly on the bottom line. She was glad the questions were over. She handed the card back to the registrar, but she refused.

"Oh, no—you keep that. Tomorrow you have to give it to the nurse when you go for your check-up. And by the way, it's only fair that since I now know your name, you should know mine. I'm Lalasa, a junior." She held out her hand, and Kel shook it doggedly. "Nice to meet you. Hope I see you soon."

"Oh, yeah…uh, you too…I mean, me too…er, yeah." Only ten o'clock in the morning, and the heat was already getting to Kel's head. She felt dizzy and her tongue was thick. "S'y'round," she slurred, as she made her way to the makeshift photo booth. She pushed open the black curtains and fell into the chair, wiping the sweat from her face onto her tee shirt. Normally she wouldn't have been this sloppy, but she was hot, tired, cranky, and there were many places she would have rather been. A man sitting behind a table with a camera controller in his hand gave her a mirror, and she took it, half-heartedly examining her reflection. As usual, her hair was all in order…but she couldn't have cared less. She handed it back, and with a blinding flash, her picture was taken, and it was all over. 

"You're all set. Just head to the building to your right when you're out of here, and give the people at the tables your name so you can find your locker." The man leaned back and yawned. "Have a nice day."

"Uh-huh," Kel muttered, and stumbled out, doing as she was directed.

Two hours and one limp chicken Caesar salad after, Kel felt even worse than when she had started. And after finding out who her orientation leader was, and hearing the many horror stories surrounding his name, she decided that if this was hell, there was no way she would survive for years of actual school at ICPA. An anonymous redheaded boy accompanied her to the soccer fields, where her orientation group was supposed to meet. He seemed very cheerful…almost too cheerful, Kel decided, for the limp and exhausting atmosphere. He fairly bounced along side her.

"So, what do you call yourself?"

It took a while for her to answer, in her confused state of mind. It was hard enough walking, let alone remembering her own name. Had she ever been so hot in her life? "I'm Keladry Mindelan." After a minute's thought, she added, "Call me Kel."

"Cool. I'm Merric Hollyrose. And you can call me…well, just plain Merric!" He chuckled jovially. "I'm from Dublin. Where do you live?"

_God, would the questions ever stop?_ "I live in Kyoto right now, but I'm originally from Cambridge…England, that is." Kel hoped the soccer fields were near, and that she could sit when she got there. Her legs felt watery, like limp overcooked noodles.

"Ah! Jolly good show." Merric chuckled again at his own joke, and winked. Kel couldn't remember having ever said anything like "jolly good show" in her life. She shook her head and forced a weak smile. Merric was a perfectly nice kid, so it seemed, but today she just didn't have the enthusiasm. They continued on, she silent, and he whistling a jaunty tune. She sighed with relief when she saw a group of people and two soccer nets. Almost there. She almost felt bad for not being as cheery in return for Merric's friendliness, but in her state, she was too nauseated to try too hard at anything.

At last the two of them reached the group of kids. In the crowd, only two people stood out: A tall boy with tan skin and slightly messy brown hair, who looked older than everyone else, and another tall boy—he looked slightly younger than the other, with long blond hair tied back in a ponytail and pale skin that was threatening to burn in the deadly Sicilian sun. His cheeks looked rosy enough as it was. And he looked rather attractive, from what Kel could see. As she and Merric reached them, the blond boy shouted to everyone.

"All right, it looks like everyone is here. I'm Joren Stone, and I'll be your orientation leader today. Let's get this freak show on the road." He turned away and started walked, leaning slightly forward in a nonchalant swagger. Kel's energy wasted as it was, she had enough brain left to decide that he was just as much of an asshole as everyone had told her, despite his good looks. Freak show? Ouch. He apparently didn't like people too much. Or at least not freshmen. 

The new students followed him, and Merric was thankfully silent beside her. On any other day, Kel would have been glad to converse, just not today, not now. But luck was not with her. The other tall boy she had noticed before fell into step on the other side of her. "Hi. My name's Neal." _Well, Kel thought,__ time to turn my brain back on. _

"Hi."

"What's yours?

"Kel." _Only monosyllabic answers required; so far, so good._

"Where're you from?"

"Japan." _Damn, guess not._

"Cool! I'm not as exciting, I guess. I'm a day student; I live next to the campus. My dad's the head of the health center, so I pretty much go here free. So are you excited for your freshman year?"

_No! Definitely not!_ "Yes."

"Me too. It's going to be my freshman year as well."

_Wait a minute…but…he looks like he's old enough to be a senior!_

The look on Kel's face must have been one of surprise, because automatically, Neal continued: "I'm nineteen. I know it's a little weird. But after eighth grade I decided I didn't want to go to high school, so I tried being a street musician, even though my dad fought me and tried to convince me not to. It took me these five years to figure out I belonged back in school. So here I am."

"Wow," was all the answer Kel could manage. A moment's silence while the troop of freshmen followed Joren, the orientation leader, to a small school bus.

When they had boarded, Neal and Kel were next to each other. Neal began talking again. "You know about this Joren guy?"

Kel gazed out the window, pulling on the collar of her shirt to ventilate. "I've heard the stories, if that's what you mean."

"Yeah. That kid's just a rich, stuck up, prejudiced bastard. I'm glad I've never met his folks. And his friends are all shitheads too. Vinson Genlith and Garvey someone-or-other, can't remember his last name—stay away from them. Last year Vinson was caught trying to date rape some girl, so I hear. But she wasn't able to give adequate proof, so Vinson wasn't punished."

Kel sat up straight—she was shocked! The energy flowed back into her as she felt a hot surge of anger. "You're kidding."

Neal frowned. "I know you don't know me very well, but for future reference, I wouldn't joke about something like that. My dad treated the girl after Vinson tried to have his way with her. She was bruised all over her face and arms, and she had to have her stomach pumped from the drugs he used on her. It's a miracle she survived. And the stupid disciplinary council called her bruises an accident. Vinson claimed he'd tried to rescue her when she had attempted suicide, and they bought it. She's now being misdiagnosed as manic depressive in a facility on mainland."

Kel didn't know what to say…but she knew now more than ever that she did not belong at ICPA. "Wow" was again all she could manage. Amazed, and no longer tired due to the shock and anger in her system, she sat up straighter. She and Neal were silent as Joren began the orientation tour.

TO BE CONTINUED…

A/N: I had originally meant for this first chapter to be somewhat lighthearted and humorous, but as you can see, I have utterly failed…what with the extremely serious topic late at hand. But I promise, once everyone is introduced and there has been at least a week of school for Kel and her fellow freshman, the humor will start. But definitely, this topic and the Joren-Vinson-Garvey trio are going to resurface again and again. Anyway, despite the last bit, I hope you enjoyed the first chapter—more maybe next weekend or the following week…summer break is almost upon me. Well, please review, let me know what you think, and give me your opinions—should I keep the topic at hand (date rape) or is it too serious for a fanfic? Because like I said, it's going to keep coming back throughout the story, the way my planning is going. So review or email (nicoli@kiwibox.com)…more soon, dudes. –Nicoli Q. Dominn


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